I was wondering the other day when I was viewing the many wonderful photos in our gallery about the thought process that you photographers use. Obviously, any member of this group has a love for black and white. Do you see you image as a black and white before you take your photo? Back in the earlier times, before digital, I would selectively load my camera with black and white film before going out on a shoot. Now it is easy to shoot now and decide later. Just curious? I often see my image as a black and white before I shoot. How about you. Does digital take away of our pre-thought process before we click. I believe that if an image is primarily graphic and dealing with shapes, light and composition that Black and white is usually my first thought for the final photo. If color is necessary for the composition then I go the other way. How many of you think this out before exposure. I know that it is not absolute as I often change my mind during processing but I often decide to shoot black and white or color before exposure.

Hello Errick

This is a very good theme you opened.

I am also curious about what other photographers would say.

My photographic journey is influenced by my darkroom age when I took my shots on B&W film only and rarely on color transparent. It was magic...because the film was not a cheap stuff and I had to think over each shot very well before I pressed the trigger. Now I use to forget that I am shooting on digital without any limits regarding the number of shots..:)

Recently in most of my cases my decision is done in advance if I go to B&w or color and what the result should be about. The most important atribute is the light of the scene. I go to color just in such a cases I consider the light and the color tones as unique and also in case the tones should be a major subject of the image. But it is not very often, I guess...I am not able to wake up early in the morning to shoot during a golden hour which I think is the right time to shoot in color...But if so.., I often choose monochrome in most cases because the morning light and long shadows look great in B&W too. The morning atmosphere in B&W is very attractive to me.

Regarding my favorite genre -minimalism...B&W is always my only choice. I am pretty sure that the story and mood is better perceived when looking at B&W image without any disturbing tones.

By the other hand...There is sometimes not easy to choose and realize B&W conversions, I mean those cases where the harsh or subtle light in combination with a lot of green tones could cause a gray look of the image...My experiences are that it use to be a challenge to convert the image to B&W to get a good result....Because I personally do not like more gray tones in B&W images, I mean a bigger amount of gray tones...this could cause some color tones in combination with specific light...

My answer to your question is Yes, I use to know before I start to shoot if I go to B&W or color.

Thanks for an interesting theme.

Peter

 

I think the digital photography just opens more flexibility, because you don't have to decide before leaving home if you go for a BW trip or a color one.

 

As for as the decision on each single shot ... sometimes it is obvious at the moment of shooting what the image will push (force) you too. But in many cases I make 2 versions of the same photo, a color and a BW. I'm essentially a color shooter, but sometimes the image just ask for BW. In most cases - in my personal perception, the difference is mainly the choice which aspect of the photo you want to enhance or put in front making the final decision for the picture you share online.

I have to say; in the majority of my color images I also include a BW layer in some degree of transparency and blending mode ... so I combine the possibilities of the 2 worlds.

Same here. I think that I do about 80% in b/w. And only use colors, when they really are part of the story themselves.

 

But even this images (the psd files) have at least one b/w layer.

 

In nearly all cases I take planned captures, and know in the forehand. Whether it will be a B/w at the end or a colored one.

 

Coming from a photojournalist background during the film ages, I was obliged for many years to shoot colour negative and only very rarely slides or BW. Consider that printing a colour negative into bw at the time was a challenge so I was only shooting for colour. In our days I take my own back and shoot 90% with the intention of converting to BW. Unless there is something really attracting to the tones, I consider colour as "noise" and only very lately I try to work with it and understand the digital colour workflow and process, so many of my colour photos may seem over-manipulated. Having experience from both analogue and digital Errick, today there is no big difference in planning and shooting, you can very easily change your mind in PP as you say.

When I was working in the darkroom I only did b/w - because I had no skills,nor the equipment for creating color photos. I had no choice. In those days when I did shoot in color it was slides,as they were less expensive than film, and you did not have to develop them. :) You had your little viewfinder to look through..and when you wanted to see them larger you put up a sheet.. Remember those days...

Only if you really loved something did you have to spend the money to have it printed in color. Younger people reading this must be wondering what in the world is she talking about.

 

Later when I used the camera just for snapshots..I used both color and b/w film and I always knew in advance if which I would do before I left the house. As I look back now I wish I had taken more in b/w.

 

With digital I never know what it will be. I always wonder how people know?

Until I 'see' it I think - why not have a choice? With Nik software it is easier now to get a good b/w image...with alot of flexibility. The one exception is shapes..when I shoot something that is primarily filled with shapes....I am already planning for b/w.

 

The truth is that I think b/w photography is far superior to color. Though I do not necessarily follow through with this on my own photos. However, I always try every picture in b/w. I do not end up with it..but I must try.

 

I just love pictures in b/w......and I have no sensible reason for this. Call it irrational.

 

I also think that many types of photos shot now in digital with b/w would be far superior if they were in film. Again it is just the look it has and it is not rational. :))

 

Phyl

 

"I believe that if an image is primarily graphic and dealing with shapes, light and composition that Black and white is usually my first thought for the final photo. If color is necessary for the composition then I go the other way."

 

That is pretty much exactly my thought process. I only think and process color when it's the color that actually tells the story. Otherwise my default thought process is always black & white.

An interesting topic indeed. I too come from a background in b&w film back in the mid 1970's. My colour work from that period was Kodachrome 64 and for a short time while doing theatre work, E6 Ektachrome (it was free to me!). As Phyllis with Phyllis, and i'm sure other, i was primarily b&w because it was doable i had my darkroom and could afford it.

Now in the digital age colour is ubiquitous and seductive, it is so seemingly easy. As a consequence i have many more colour images. Still i find that i still see in b&w and often enough images that aren't quite working or the "why did i take that one" image that still won't go away are often an unconscious choice made in b&w. I also find that i'm torn between the too and have equally strong version of some images.

i Look forward to reading more here

I also worked my pictures in the "dark room"

I loved to give you a bath of selenium as final tone. In this way I made sure the durability of work and I liked the look of the image,

Something like this:

http://1x.com/photo/292921/all:user:423930

While I understand that no place - by the rules - in black and white group.

But traditionally it was very common to use selenium in the images.

Sol

 

I regularly think in Black and White, and take in advantage some colors on the scene to use them to contrast the image on Lightroom.

I think 85% of my shots are meant to be black and white, or that's how I feel it. Of course there are certain shots that look better on color than monochrome. When shooting film, I always load monochrome films and that makes me think even deeper into viewing the scene in black and white inside my head.

 

Hello. I like the topic. Being born in the 90s has given me the chance to start with digital photography. However - I found the film and the darkroom probably half an year after I started taking photos. But your question was how other photographers do BW - I do think in BW when it comes to light - where is the best lit place and where is the darkest black... Even when I shoot colour - I think in BW first just because of the light. With digital camera it is not a problem to convert something from colour to BW and back - that's something I love about it - and you can always see what exactly have you done.

 

But back to our sheep - I just look for lines, spots and so on - and it comes by itself...